Weekly Toll: Who Didn’t Come Home From Work Last Week

Officer dies after falling off on-ramp to Poplar Street Bridge during struggle with 2 suspects

EAST ST. LOUIS, IL – Two suspects are under arrest after a high-speed chase from Washington Park Illinois into East St. Louis on westbound I-64. KTVI-TV reports around 5 p.m. Saturday, officers from the Washington Park Police Department were chasing two suspects in a vehicle when it struck two cars on the Poplar Street Bridge. The suspect vehicle stopped and the suspects fled on foot. An officer stopped and gave chase when he tried to jump from one bridge span to another thinking there was solid footing between the spans. The officer fell an undetermined amount of feet below to the ground, suffering fractures to his lower body. EMS personnel transported the officer to a St. Louis hospital for treatment, where he later died of his injuries. The officer has been identified as Auxiliary Police Officer Ricardo Davis, 44 years old.

Truck driver killed in North City crash that left 2 dead, 6 kids injured identified

ST. LOUIS, MO — Two adults were killed and six children suffered serious injuries in an early-morning Friday crash. Police say the investigation has shown a Nissan Armanda speeding south on Riverview, when the driver lost control. “It lost control, went up on the grassy median, went airborne and crashed head-on into a box truck going northbound,” said Lt. Paul Lauer of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. The driver of the roadside assistance box truck, later identified 63-year-old Rasim Mustedanagic, and the female passenger of the SUV were pronounced dead at the scene.

Utah miner killed in Elko County underground mine collapse

ELKO, NV – A miner at Jerritt Canyon Gold’s Lee Smith Mine north of Elko has died in a roof collapse at the underground gold operation run by Small Mine Development. Jason Holman, 42, of Goshen, Utah, was killed Thursday evening, the company confirmed. “Jason was loading a round and was involved in a fall of ground near the end of his shift,” Small Mine Development’s general manager, Keith Jones, said on Oct. 26. According to U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration’s spokeswoman Amy Louviere, the miner was “loading blast holes underground when the cemented backfill roof fell, causing fatal injuries. MSHA has inspectors at the mine site and has secured the scene.”

Construction worker killed in accident at school work site

CONCORD, Mass. (AP) — Authorities say a man doing construction work at a Massachusetts school has died in an industrial accident. Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Concord police Chief Joseph O’Connor say Daniel W. Adams was operating a boom truck at the Willard Elementary School on Wednesday afternoon when he was struck by the crane. The preliminary investigation shows that the man was outside of the vehicle when an apparent mechanical failure occurred, resulting in him being struck by the equipment.

Wrightstown truck driver killed in I-94 crash in Racine County

RACINE, Wis. (AP) – A fatal accident involving two semis temporarily shut down all lanes of Interstate 41/94 in Racine County. Sheriff’s officials say the crash about 3:30 a.m. Thursday happened when one semi was stopped on the interstate, possibly due to a flat tire. The other semi struck the first semi causing it to flip on its side. The driver of the second semi died at the scene of the crash. He is identified as 61-year-old Mark Gerard Verheyen from Wrightstown. The other driver was taken to a Racine hospital.

Dump truck driver killed in crash with Amtrak train

SUFFOLK, VA. — Officials say a dump truck driver is dead after a collision with an Amtrak train in Virginia. Suffolk police said in a statement Friday that the truck and train crashed in downtown Suffolk around 8 p.m. Thursday. Police say 61-year-old Karl Alexander Hill of Norfolk, the driver of the dump truck, was killed. Fire officials say the 60 passengers aboard the train were assessed and one man was taken to a local hospital with a minor injury.

Employee Dies At Ford Plant In Chicago Heights

CHICAGO HEIGHTS, IL — An employee of the Ford Motor Company Plant in Chicago Heights died at the work site Thursday morning. Chicago Heights police say James Chalmers, 48, of Chicago was found unresponsive on the ground next to a rear trash compactor with severe trauma to his chest area. Paramedics began life-saving efforts after they and police were called to the plant located at 1000 E. 14th St. in Chicago Heights at 6:45 a.m. Chalmers was pronounced dead at 7:10 a.m., according to police. He was working in the rear waste warehouse at the plant, police said.

Three linemen killed by suspected drunk driver in Florida Panhandle

CHIPLEY, Fla. – Three power workers were killed after they were struck by the driver of a Ford F-150 towing a UHaul trailer in Washington County, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The crash occurred at 6:50 p.m. Wednesday at the intersection of State Road 77 and Talton Drive in Chipley, a small town north of Panama City. Troopers said the linemen were working on power poles in a ditch. The power workers were in Chipley working to restore electricity to the hard-hit Florida Panhandle after Hurricane Michael. Troopers identified the deceased as George Cecil, 52, of Cole Rain, North Carolina, and James Ussery,60, of Chipley, Florida. A third victim, Ryan Barrett, 22, of Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, died of his injuries on Thursday afternoon. Cecil and Barrett were employees of Lee Electric in North Carolina, and Ussery was an employee of West Florida electric.

Clarksville, TN — A worker who was on a lift when it was hit by a truck on Riverside Drive Friday has died from his injuries. Robert Bartz, 43, died Thursday at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, according to Clarksville Police spokesman Jim Knoll. At about 11:37 a.m. Friday, Justin Clark, 31, was driving southbound on Riverside Drive, passing through a work zone, and for some reason did not maintain the work zone travel pattern, Knoll said. His truck hit a stationary police cruiser and then two lifts carrying workers who were painting the pedestrian overpass.

CORONER IDENTIFIES WORKER FOUND DEAD IN ELEVATOR SHAFT

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) – The Fayette County Coroner’s Office says a worker was found dead in an elevator shaft at a construction site in downtown Lexington Thursday. The coroner says he is 38-year-old Travis Collins. The coroner was called to the site at 369 E. Main around 12 p.m. According to Fayette County Coroner Gary Ginn, the man was part of a construction crew installing HVAC systems on the roof. Ginn estimates the man fell 14-16 feet down the elevator shaft. Ginn says no one saw the man fall, but co-workers noticed he was missing before finding him dead in the elevator shaft.

Construction worker dies after being hit by flatbed truck in Billings

Billings, MT — A 52-year old Montana Department of Transportation construction worker, Jeffrey Dyekman, died after a flatbed truck struck the worker at the South Billings Boulevard off-ramp of Interstate 90 The crash was reported as a two-vehicle crash near mile marker 447. Lt. Brandon Wooley said road workers were doing maintenance work in the area Wednesday on the highway, but the off-ramp was not completely closed. Wooley said a Big Sky Steel flatbed truck, driven by a 28-year-old Billings man, entered the construction zone from the eastbound lane and struck the worker.

UPS employee dies after being injured on the job, Lexington police say

Lexington, KY — A UPS employee in Lexington died Tuesday after being injured while working. The incident happened just before noon Tuesday at 1800 Mercer Road, said Lexington Police spokesman Aaron Greenleaf. The UPS employee was doing maintenance on equipment when he was injured. He was taken to the hospital where he later died, Greenleaf said.

Police identify man killed in Freeport work bus crash

FREEPORT, Texas (KTRK) — Freeport police have identified the man killed in a rollover bus crash on Tuesday.
Authorities say 29-year-old Aaron Green, of Dayton, was killed when the work bus flipped multiple times on Highway 36 in Freeport. Green was one of dozens of Zachry Construction employees on the bus, and they were going to a lot where their vehicles were parked.

Michigan construction worker killed at job site

Grand Rapids, MI — A construction worker was killed Saturday at a job site in Grand Rapids. Investigators say 48 year old Luciano Marbon of Grand Rapids, was working on building renovation when he was hit by a large piece of falling wood. He was pronounced dead at a local hispital.

Door maker employee killed by wood thrown from machine

JOHNSTOWN, Co. – A Sun Mountain Custom Doors employee was killed in a tragic accident while working last Tuesday the 16th. 54-year-old Steven Verle Deniston was reportedly struck in the chest by a piece of wood thrown from a machine. He was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Tree worker falls to his death in Marbletown

MARBLETOWN, N.Y. — A tree worker fell about 40 feet to his death from the limb of a tree he was trimming on Mohonk Road, state police said Monday. Donald Schmidt, 54, address unavailable, was working at 45 Mohonk Road in Marbletown on Tuesday, Oct. 16, when the limb broke and he fell into a neighboring yard at 9 Mohonk Road, Trooper Steven Nevel said in an email.

Truck driver killed in I-295 crash

Burlington County, NH — A 50-year-old truck driver was killed in a crash on Interstate 295 in Burlington County on Monday afternoon, State Police said. Santos Rodriguez, of Camden, drove off southbound side of the road into the center median and struck several trees just before 2 p.m., according to Trooper Alejandro Goez.

Semi driver hit and killed by train in west-central Minnesota

Chippewa County, MN — The Chippewa County Sheriff’s Office has confirmed that the man killed in the collision with a train is 79-year-old Daniel Schmidt. driver of a semi pulling a trailer filled with sugar beets was killed Monday when his rig was struck by a train in west-central Minnesota. The train involved was being operated by Burlington Northern Santa Fe.

Bellefontaine man killed in Delaware County semi crash

Delaware County, OH — A semi-truck driver died Monday morning after crashing in the front yard of a home in Delaware County. The Ohio State Highway Patrol said Glen G. Buettner, 68, of Bellefontaine, was driving a 2007 Freightliner westbound on State Route 37. The Freightliner, carrying a load of eggs, failed to negotiate a curve in the roadway, traveled off the right side of the roadway, overturned onto its right side and struck a utility pole.